Spectroscopic Data of Steroid Glycoside: Cardenolides and Pregnanes

This book is the first work of its kind in the field of steroid glycosides. It serves as an essential reference guide containing spectroscopic, physical and biological activity data of over 3500 steroid glycosides, offering the structures and the data of the naturally occurring glycosides of steroids. An extra effort has been made to include the data from Chinese publications which are generally not available in the libraries of Western countries. All compounds are arranged according to the structure of the aglycone, and, in its own class, according to the increasing molecular weight, making this book extremely useful for the structure elucidation of new natural products, particularly glycosides. The book offers a practical desk reference for all scientists and students interested in steroid glycosides and their biological and medicinal importance.

Professor Viqar Uddin Ahmad has been associated with the HEJ Research Institute of Chemistry since its establishment in 1967. Prof. Viqar’s currents interests are on isolation and structure elucidation of new natural products. Some of them have interesting biological activities. For example: VArious eudesmane sesquiterpenes which showed antibacterial activity against Escherichia coli, Klebsiella ozaenoe, K. pneumonieae, Proteus vulgaris, Shigella boddi, Staphylococcus aureus, S. pyogenes andB. anthracis; some triterpenoidal and steroidal saponins exhibited toxicity in Brine Shrimp Lethality bioassay and antibacterial activity against Pseudomonas pseudomaliae, Co-rynebactterium xerosis etc. One of the saponins isolated from a Trukish plant manifested hypotensive activity in anaesthetized rat.

Prof. Viqar Uddin Ahmad availed a Fulbright Fellowship of nine months in 1993. during his stay at Cornell University, Itacha, USA. Prof. Viqar Uddin Ahmad worked on the twelve step total synthesis of and alkaloid isolated from an insect. Prof. Viqar also dilivered lecturers in the chemistry departments of Central Michighan University, Michighan, Georgia Tech, Atlanta, georgia, State University, Atlanta, Georgia and Cornell University, Ithaca.